The basis for the F/A-18 Hornet was the YF-17, which lost to the F-16 in the Air Force's LWF/ACF program. In the early 1970s, the US Navy was attempting to integrate the functions of the A-7 Corsair II and the F-4 Phantom II into one aircraft, known as the VFAX. Congressional spending limits would not allow the development of an entirely new platform, hence the decision to go with a carrier-borne version of the Air Forces LWF/ACF program. This YF-17 redevelopment program was known as NACF. As Northrop, the original developer of the YF-17, had no experience in the development of earner-based aircraft, they joined forces with McDonnell-Douglas, and began work on the project m September of 1974 (as McDonnell-Douglas was later acquired by Boeing, the Hornet is now known officially as the Boeing F/A-18). With new strakes, or leading-edge extensions heading out from the wings to the nose, and two huge vertical stabilizers positioned between the wings and horizontal tail fins, the now F/A-18 Hornet was officially approved in May of 1975.
